Wharariki Beach
Geography
The north-facing sandy beach is accessible only via a 20-minute walking track from the end of Wharariki Road. The road end is approximately 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) from the nearest settlement, the small village of Pūponga. A camping ground is located along Wharariki Road, but the area surrounding the beach is devoid of any development. Wharariki Beach is bordered by Puponga Farm Park, with the wider area more or less surrounded by the northern end of Kahurangi National Park.
The beach is flanked to the east and west by cliffs, but due to the flat topography of the area behind it, the beach area and the grassy dunes behind it are quite exposed to winds.
Archway Islands
Wharariki Beach is perhaps best known for the Archway Islands, a small archipelago of four islands ranging from the beachside (part of the beach at low tide) to roughly 250 metres (820 ft) offshore. The islands are featured frequently in photos in New Zealand landscape calendars. It is also the default lock screen image on Microsoft's Windows 10 operating system.
Attractions
The beach is popular for its colony of fur seal pups; during low tide, people have access to the pools where pups play in front of the easternmost of the Archway Islands.
References
- ^ "Farewell Spit and Puponga Farm Park tracks". Department of Conservation NZ. Retrieved 14 December 2015.
- ^ "Wharariki Beach, Tasman – NZ Topo Map". NZ Topo Map. Land Information New Zealand. Retrieved 14 December 2015.
- ^ Worrall, Jill (2 May 2012). "Wharariki Beach: A rugged Tasman gem". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 14 December 2015.
- ^ Bacic, Ryan (6 November 2020). "Ever want to jump into your screensaver? These are the destinations behind them". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 29 March 2023. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
- ^ Clark, Poppy (11 June 2023). "The NZ beach you never realised was world famous". The Nelson Mail. Retrieved 2 October 2024.